Yahoo Xtra News Headline; says: 'A sign painted on a wall welcomes visitors to the "paradise" of Paracas, but the tourist oasis is a shell of its former self after Peru was hit by a powerful earthquake. Hotels along the tiny fishing village have been deserted since Wednesday's earthquake triggered waves that sent tourists running out of their waterfront rooms on the Pacific Ocean.Just 15 kilometers south of Pisco, the town hardest hit by the earthquake that killed 500 people, Paracas attracts European and American tourists to its national reserve's rich wildlife which includes penguins, flamingos and the occasional condor. Paracas is also known for its ancient burial grounds of the pre-Incan Paracas culture, whose people buried their dead inside communal, bottle-shaped tombs.
But the villagers fear it will take several months before tourists, the town's lifeblood, will flock back to Paracas, which is already overshadowed by more famous attractions such as the mysterious Nazca lines nearby and the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu.
